Internet governance talks in jeopardy as Arab states, Russia ally

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – A landmark attempt to set global rules for overseeing the Internet threatened to fall apart on Friday as a rift pitting the United States and some Western countries against the rest of the world widened, participants in the talks said.A 12-day conference of the International Telecommunications Union, taking place in Dubai, is supposed to result in the adoption of a new international...

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Susan Powell's Father-in-Law Secretly Took 4,500 Pictures of Her

12/07/2012 at 07:30 PM EST Wrapping up a year that has brought unimaginable frustration and heartbreak, Susan Powell's family marked the three-year anniversary of her disappearance at a ceremony this week near where her two sons are buried."It's a hard time of year," Susan's father, Chuck Cox, tells PEOPLE....

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Smokers celebrate as Wash. legalizes marijuana

SEATTLE (AP) — The crowds of happy people lighting joints under Seattle's Space Needle early Thursday morning with nary a police officer in sight bespoke the new reality: Marijuana is legal under Washington state law.Hundreds gathered at Seattle Center for a New Year's Eve-style countdown to 12 a.m., when the legalization measure passed by voters last month took effect. When the clock struck, they...

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Wall Street Week Ahead: "Cliff" worries may drive tax selling

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investors typically sell stocks to cut their losses at year end. But worries about the "fiscal cliff" - and the possibility of higher taxes in 2013 - may act as the greatest incentive to sell both winners and losers by December 31. The $600 billion of automatic tax increases and spending cuts scheduled for the beginning of next year includes higher rates for capital...

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Netflix says CEO’s Facebook post triggered SEC notice

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Netflix Inc said on Thursday securities regulators warned they may bring civil action against the company and its chief executive for violating public disclosure rules with a Facebook post, in a case that raises questions about how public companies communicate on social media.The high-profile Silicon Valley CEO, Reed Hastings, dismissed the contention and said he did not...

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Kate Carrying Twins?

By Simon Perry and Dimi Gaidatzi 12/07/2012 at 07:15 AM EST Prince William and Kate outside King Edward VII Hospital on Dec. 6 Rupert Hartley/REX USA When Prince William and Kate's official announcement that she is pregnant came Monday, the palace said she was "expecting a baby."But in light...

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Celebrations planned as Wash. legalizes marijuana

SEATTLE (AP) — Legal marijuana possession becomes a reality under Washington state law on Thursday, and some people planned to celebrate the new law by breaking it.Voters in Washington and Colorado last month made those the first states to decriminalize and regulate the recreational use of marijuana. Washington's law takes effect Thursday and allows adults to have up to an ounce of pot — but it bans...

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Stock futures dip ahead of jobs report

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The stock index futures dipped slightly on Friday as investors remained cautious ahead of a key monthly jobs report which was expected to have been impacted by Sandy, a massive storm that swept through the U.S. Northeast. U.S. non-farm employment, due at 8:30 a.m. ET (1330 GMT), is forecast to have risen by 93,000 jobs in November after gaining 171,000 in October,...

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Memo From Afghanistan: YouTube Ban Is Shrugged Off in Afghanistan

KABUL, Afghanistan — When it comes to YouTube, the government of Afghanistan intends to keep its hand on the switch for now. More than two months after the Afghan government banned YouTube to prevent the spread of an anti-Islamic video, it has yet to restore access to the popular video Web site. While officials say they hope to lift the block “as soon as possible,” they have offered only...

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John McAfee Arrested in Guatemala

By Tim Nudd 12/06/2012 at 07:30 AM EST John McAfee, the American anti-virus software pioneer who has been on the run from police since his neighbor was found murdered in Belize last month, has been arrested in Guatemala. McAfee, 67, was detained Wednesday at a hotel in Guatemala City and is accused of entering...

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Stock futures flat before data, "fiscal cliff" woes linger

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock futures were little changed on Thursday in what could be another choppy session as the progress of fiscal negotiations in Washington continues to determine the market's fate. * President Barack Obama said there could be a quick deal to avert the "fiscal cliff" - tax hikes and spending cuts set to begin next year, possibly driving the U.S. economy back into recession...

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Typhoon Said to Have Killed Hundreds in Philippines

Erik De Castro/ReutersResidents transported the body of victim in the southern Philippines on Wednesday. MANILA —Rescue teams were trying to reach isolated villages in the southern Philippines on Wednesday after a powerful out-of-season typhoon tore through the region, leaving more than 270 people dead, officials said. NASATyphoon Bopha moved toward the Philippines on Monday. ...

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Software guru McAfee says to seek asylum in Guatemala

GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) – U.S. anti-virus software guru John McAfee, who is on the run from police in Belize seeking to question him in a murder probe, has crossed into Guatemala and said on Tuesday he will seek political asylum there.McAfee has been in hiding for three weeks since police in Belize said they wanted to question him as “a person of interest” about the murder of fellow American Gregory...

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Mario Lopez Wedding Photos: A Family Affair

12/05/2012 at 07:15 AM EST Courtney Mazza, Mario Lopez and their daughter, Gia FameFlynet Mario Lopez looks good wearing next to nothing – but he's absolutely dashing in a suit. In photos from his weekend nuptials to actress Courtney Mazza, Lopez, 39, looks like...

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Study: Drug coverage to vary under health law

WASHINGTON (AP) — A new study says basic prescription drug coverage could vary dramatically from state to state under President Barack Obama's health care overhaul.That's because states get to set benefits for private health plans that will be offered starting in 2014 through new insurance exchanges.The study out Tuesday from the market analysis firm Avalere Health found that some states will require...

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Stock futures up as China fuels growth hopes; data on tap

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock futures rose on Wednesday after comments from China's new leader boosted global growth expectations. * Chinese Communist Party chief Xi Jinping said the country would maintain its fine-tuning of economic policies in 2013 to ensure stable economic growth. That sparked a rally in Chinese shares, with the Shanghai Composite Index <.ssec> surging 2.9 percent....

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Assad Facing Setbacks as Syrian Capital Is Besieged

Narciso Contreras/Associated PressA kitchen in a residence in Aleppo, Syria, damaged Sunday in fighting between Free Syrian Army fighters and government forces. BEIRUT, Lebanon — Fierce fighting on the battlefield and setbacks on the diplomatic front increased pressure on the embattled Syrian government as fresh signs emerged on Tuesday of a sustained battle for control of the capital. News...

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The Voice: Which Team Will Win?

TV Watch The Voice By Julia Haskins 12/04/2012 at 07:45 AM EST From left: Adam Levine, Cee Lo Green, Christina Aguilera, Blake Shelton and host Carson Daly Mark Seliger/NBC The Voice's top six contestants had two chances to shine on Monday, when each singer performed...

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Fossil fuel subsidies in focus at climate talks

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Hassan al-Kubaisi considers it a gift from above that drivers in oil- and gas-rich Qatar only have to pay $1 per gallon at the pump."Thank God that our country is an oil producer and the price of gasoline is one of the lowest," al-Kubaisi said, filling up his Toyota Land Cruiser at a gas station in Doha. "God has given us a blessing."To those looking for a global response to climate...

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Stock futures signal slightly higher open

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock futures edged up in low volume on Tuesday as the market continues to be hostage to negotiations in Washington on how to avert a "fiscal cliff" that could push the U.S. economy into recession. * Congress Republicans proposed steep spending cuts on Monday but gave no ground on President Barack Obama's call to raise taxes, and the proposal was dismissed by the...

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Clinton Warns Syria Against Using Chemical Weapons

PRAGUE — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Monday warned Syrian President Bashar al-Assad not to use chemical weapons and said that the United States was prepared to act if he ignored the warning. “This is a red line for the United States,” Mrs. Clinton said. “I am not going to telegraph in any specifics what we would do in the event of credible evidence that the Assad regime...

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Johnny Depp Performs with Alice Cooper in L.A.

Caught in the Act 12/03/2012 at 07:15 AM EST Johnny Depp and Alice Cooper Todd Nakamine Johnny Depp rocks!The Lone Ranger actor joined Alice Cooper on stage at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles on Thursday. "Johnny was in great spirits," a fellow concertgoer...

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Asperger's dropped from revised diagnosis manual

CHICAGO (AP) — The now familiar term "Asperger's disorder" is being dropped. And abnormally bad and frequent temper tantrums will be given a scientific-sounding diagnosis called DMDD. But "dyslexia" and other learning disorders remain.The revisions come in the first major rewrite in nearly 20 years of the diagnostic guide used by the nation's psychiatrists. Changes were approved Saturday.Full details...

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China data lifts futures, fiscal cliff concern lingers

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock futures edged higher on Monday on upbeat factory data from China, but concerns over budget dealings in Washington are expected to keep traders cautious. * China's economy picked up in November even as a broader global recovery remains fragile, with factory activity patchy elsewhere in Asia as demand from the developed world remains depressed. *...

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